Frank Wouters
Speed, the forgotten cost reduction factor in the energy transition
To keep global warming below 1.5 °C, our energy systems need to be carbon emission free latest by 2050, and many countries have pledged to do so. A high-level model was built for a fictitious economy called Utopia to assess three pathways towards a zero-carbon economy by 2050: a gradual (linear) replacement of fossil fuels by clean energy, an accelerated pathway leading to a carbon free system by 2035, and a delayed pathway, in which replacement takes place from 2035 onwards. The model yields very clear results. The accelerated pathway is not only 21% cheaper than a gradual phasing out of fossil fuels, with accumulated savings of $4 trillion over a period of 30 years, but also the climate wins, with emissions reducing from 32.7 GT to 13.1 GT over the same period.
Readers also like
illuminem briefings
Environmental Sustainability
illuminem
Environmental Sustainability
Maria Rugamer
Environmental Sustainability
Vilhelmiina Vulli
Environmental Sustainability
Sanghamitra Chattopadhyay Mukherjee
Pollution
Thaddeus Anim-Somuah
Pollution
James Balzer
Climate Change
Leon Stille
Energy Transition
Antonio Vizcaya Abdo
Climate Change
Joel B. Stronberg
Climate Change
Jean-Baptiste Vaujour
Energy
Phanos Hadjikyriakou
ESG
Minou Schillings
illuminemX